EnCoffin Me Chapter 66
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
Chapter 66
Alexio arrived at the location Noah said the lunatic had gone to provide backup. But the place was already deserted. The soldiers had all followed orders and retreated by another route. Only the wind and snow remained.
Alexio stood in the snow for a moment, carefully studying the tracks on the ground. His conclusions were mixed.
The good news was that no battle had broken out here. The Silver Crusaders of the Holy Temple hadn't come after the lunatic.
The bad news was… the lunatic seemed to have acted on his own and gone off to do something.
He couldn't just ignore it.
So Alexio followed the path he had once taken, pushing through the howling blizzard until he reached a part of the mountain he had never been to before. Mountains rose in layers, stretching endlessly. Finding one person here was no easier than searching for a needle in a haystack. But Alexio wasn't without means. He pulled from his pocket an everdark stone that had once passed through the lunatic's hands. He activated his shadow magic, and the stone in his palm swelled, transforming into a round, plump shadow bat.
He wasn't bad at tracking, just not very skilled. Besides, having been chased for so many years, even he, foolish as he might be, would have learned a few tricks from the lunatic.
By the way, all of Alexio's bat transformations were based on his own bat form. Alexio rarely transformed into this shape because it was a bit plump, always making him wonder if the extra weight he'd gained from all his snacking had found its way to his bat form.
The shadow bat left his hand and flew swiftly close to the ground. Alexio kept a close watch on his surroundings, and as soon as he sensed a faint ripple, he immediately recalled the bat and used the shadows cast by nearby boulders to conceal himself.
This was undoubtedly a mine shaft, marked ‘No. 10’ near the archway. Alexio didn't act rashly. He calmly observed, preparing to find an opportunity to capture someone and extract what he wanted from their minds using mental magic.
A man dressed like an overseer stepped out of the mine, seemingly talking to someone over a communicator with a somewhat urgent tone. He didn't notice that the shadow beneath his feet was slowly rising, gradually wrapping around his ankles. Just as he ended the call and looked down, the vampire swiftly knocked him unconscious with a single strike.
Alexio extracted the man's recent memories and looked into the dark mine ahead. The overseer didn't know much, only that something big was happening deep inside the mine. Many miners had been temporarily evacuated to avoid interfering with the operation. After learning all this, Alexio took out a small, button-like device. It was a special tool developed by the military to control prisoners of war.
Shadow roses dragged the unconscious overseer to a hidden spot, while the device emitted a faint glow that enveloped him. Alexio also sent his current coordinates, hoping that once the camp finished handling their side, they could free up forces to support him here.
He stared into the pitch-black mine. Knowing the paths inside would be a maze, he'd have to take it one step at a time. Just as he was about to enter, he suddenly heard a ‘meow meow.’ He turned and saw a small black cat crouched in the snow. When their eyes met, it tilted its head slightly, meowed twice more, then raised its tail and approached, rubbing its cheeks and body against Alexio's lower leg.
Was it a miner's cat? It seemed to have been exposed to some dark energy, acting unusually friendly toward Alexio. But he couldn't bring a cat inside the mine, so he gave the cat a slight mental suggestion to make it stay at the entrance. Then, he adjusted the hooded cloak of the Silver Crusaders he was wearing, making sure it completely concealed his figure.
The wind and snow blew into the mine, dampening the black cat's tail. The cat took a few steps deeper into the tunnel to avoid the cold. Its pale golden eyes reflected the growing storm outside. Suddenly, its pupils brightened into a dazzling golden hue, breaking the weak mental suggestion. Silently, it slipped into the mine, following Alexio's footsteps.
Deep inside the mine, Delvie was levitating a lamp so that the saint could clearly see the arrangements they had made in the depths of the mine.
“As planned, when the Federation forces reach this area and discover the mine, we'll stage a chase, making it look like we're hunting you. The vampire has a good relationship with you right now, so he should pursue you here,” Delvie said. Then, with a hint of sympathy, she added, “You absolutely must land a decisive blow! This is a precious opportunity bought by sacrificing an entire front line and a portion of our mining sites!”
“…Of course.”
The saint replied calmly. As the floating lamp descended, he gradually took in the full view of the place.
The deep pit was immense, as if it stretched all the way to the earth's core. The weak light from the lamp illuminated the pit's walls, where fleeting flashes of multicolored light appeared and vanished in the darkness. Lucius knew these were reflections from the everdark stones. The walls were densely covered with unrecharged everdark stones. Their sheer number was so great that even someone as powerful as Alexio's power would likely be drained dry here.
His expression remained calm, but inside, his mind had already turned cold.
It was time to close the net. Although Theo still hadn't arrived, and the person Delvie mentioned as trusted by Theo hadn't come either, he decided to act now. At least Delvie and her capable subordinates were here. It was enough to meet his minimum expected gain.
Delvie's voice continued to echo, stressing “Please, make sure” again and again, unaware that the hunter before her no longer heard her. The hunter's sky-blue eyes, light and romantic in tone, held no emotion beneath. He slowly lifted his gaze and looked at Delvie.
“Of course,” he promised again, placing his hand on the hunting knife at his waist.
He would absolutely land a decisive blow.
Cravenson raced back to camp at full speed. He landed, shaking the snow from his wings, then froze and ducked behind a makeshift shelter. Ahead, the battle raged, and he was stunned by the sheer size of the enemy forces. The military's main troops were stretched thin along the front line, and even counting just their core fighters, they were still slightly outnumbered.
Fortunately, the troops guarding the command post were exceptionally elite. As long as they could hold their ground, the invaders would meet their end the moment reinforcements arrived!
The invaders clearly understood this as well. Throwing caution to the wind, they launched relentless attacks, trying to destroy the command post in the shortest time possible. Cravenson was currently blocked on the road to rendezvous with the others. He took a deep breath and pulled out an everdark stone, which stored Alexio's dark power. Clenching the stone tightly, Cravenson began a long incantation.
The lich stationed at the camp suddenly fluttered her eyelashes. The dark energy slowly expanding from behind the enemy lines couldn't escape her senses. She called to Zhen and whispered a few words. Zhen nodded slightly. His domain had already begun to extend, covering the core of their current camp. A few invaders had broken in earlier but suddenly turned on each other, only to be killed by the military.
Zhen had always believed this was the full extent of his domain. The divine favor he had received was already powerful enough. But when he shared this thought with Alexio, the latter shook his head slowly.
“You've seen the records. Do you think my Red Moon Royal City is strong?”
Zhen naturally gave an affirmative answer.
“But that was only the【Waxing Crescent】. More than half of the lunar phases had yet to be revealed. Your domain is the same, Zhen. As long as you want, the domain can hold many more possibilities.”
The imperial son holds a domain, where all beings possess spirits. Zhen knew the origin of this domain because the eastern faction had always revered the living beings of heaven and earth. Birds, beasts, insects, fish, mist, snow, rain — all of these possessed the right to receive offerings and worship. From this, it seemed his domain was also…
Cravenson finished the last syllable. Above the battlefield, clouds condensed. Suddenly, a rift opened in the clouds, and a narrow, blood-red eye opened within it. A Silver Crusader in a white cloak looked up, recognizing the name of this large-scale magic.
“The Eye of Hell…”
The blood-red eye closed, then reopened just seconds later. A beam of red light shot out from it, sweeping the ground below. Even shields couldn't fully block its faint touch. The earth was split open by a huge fissure as screams echoed nonstop. Seizing the moment, the military pushed the enemy back. Cravenson planned to use the opportunity to regroup with his comrades.
The fallen angel spread his wings, ready to take flight, when suddenly a hook shot out from the flank at a sharp angle. Caught off guard due to lack of battlefield experience, Cravenson felt a stabbing pain in his left wing and staggered. The hook pulled again with force, but without hesitation, he drew his sword. The everdark stone in his other hand shattered after expending all its energy. Empowered by dark energy, his sword instantly sliced through the hook.
“Unexpectedly tenacious.”
Cravenson's pupils constricted sharply. The shadows of three more hooks flickered in his vision. This time, he clearly realized he had no means to defend himself!
A fierce snowstorm suddenly howled in, completely engulfing the three hooks and separating Cravenson from his attacker.
“Mr. Cravenson!”
Zhen controlled the blizzard while the lich held the line. Crisscrossing bone spikes blocked the attack from the flank, allowing the fallen angel to take flight again. Under the full cover of his allies, he returned safely to their formation. Only then could Cravenson catch his breath. He looked back toward the howling storm. The attacker never showed again. Only the occasional sound of beam rifles firing could be heard.
…Beam rifles?
“Dr. Noah is holding them back!” Zhen struggled to control the blizzard, trying to create an opening for Noah.
Cravenson remembered him. As president of the Association of Dark Creatures, he naturally kept an eye on personnel changes in the conservation center. Noah from the military had taken over Zhu Heng's position. Cravenson had reviewed Noah's profile. It seemed promising enough to send him to the front lines, but he had been held back due to his psychological evaluation.
The reason? He was too afraid of dying.
But now, positioned safely in the center, Noah's rigorous training was proving invaluable. Even at this long range, his shots were precise, his predictions frighteningly accurate. Olsen glanced toward Noah several times, still troubled by how such a promising recruit could be so fearful of death.
The last shot fired, and Noah lowered his rifle. His forehead was damp with sweat from tension.
“Can't hold them back. They're coming.”
The wind and snow howled as the attacker's figure gradually emerged, first as a vague, dark silhouette. Soon, he cut through the blizzard, his long grappling hook dragging along the ground. He raised his ocean-blue eyes, his golden hair gleaming brightly.
“Mr. Lucius… no, not quite! But it really looks like him!” Noah muttered. “From the clothes to the expression, it's too similar…”
The young man stood firm, the tip of his sword pointed diagonally at the ground. If Lucius had been present, he would have instantly recognized this returning old acquaintance.
The former hunter of the Holy Temple, once defeated by Alexio…
Aamon.
The hunter spoke slowly, his gaze dark.
“Where is the third-generation vampire Alexio?”